Ian Murray has been sacked as Scotland Secretary as Sir Keir Starmer reshuffled his Cabinet following Angela Rayner’s resignation as deputy prime minister and Housing Secretary.
Mr Murray accompanied the Prime Minister in Scotland on Thursday as they toured the frigate HMS Glasgow, currently under construction by BAE Systems in Scotstoun.
He is Labour’s longest serving Scottish MP, representing Edinburgh South since 2010 and was made Scotland Secretary when Labour won last year’s general election.
In a parting note, Mr Murray admitted he was “hugely disappointed to be leaving government” and reflected on what he has helped to bring about, including the UK supercomputer at the University of Edinburgh, the largest budget settlement in the history of devolution, and GB Energy in Aberdeen.
There is speculation that Douglas Alexander — who held the post in Tony Blair’s government — could replace him.
Ms Rayner resigned this morning shortly after Sir Keir received a report from Sir Laurie Magnus, the prime minister’s independent adviser on ministerial standards.
She admitted to underpaying stamp duty on a property, but blamed the “error” on inadequate legal advice.
The government suffered another blow when the investment minister, Baroness Gustafsson of Chesterton also resigned. The former boss of cybersecurity firm Darktrace was appointed by Sir Keir less than a year ago.
The SNP said “Scottish families are paying the price for Labour Party failure”. Stephen Gethins MP said the sacking is “the latest sign of Labour Party division, acrimony and infighting” as the Labour Party slumped 20 points behind the SNP in the latest opinion polls this week.
Axeing Mr Murray just months from the Scottish elections has raised eyebrows across the political spectrum and caused some anger within Scottish Labour whose members value his contribution to the party’s planning, not least his efforts in the run-up to last year’s general election success.
First elected in 2010, Mr Murray was the party’s only Scottish MP between 2015 and 2017, and again from 2019 to 2023.
Lucy Powell, the Leader of the House of Commons, has also left government.
In a statement on X, she said the Prime Minister had informed her of “his intention to appoint a new Leader of the House of Commons.”
“This has not been an easy time for the Government. People want to see change and improvements to their difficult lives.”
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